Crime In The Caribbean: CARICOM Must Adapt Development Comes, With Crime, So New Approaches Necessary

An Essay By Michael D. Roberts

And too, it was United States banana companies Chiquita and Dole that helped ruin the Caribbean banana industry when they brought the Caribbean to the World Trade Organization (WTO) citing unfair trade practices and the protectionist policies of England. When the WTO ruled against the Caribbean its decision almost bankrupted Dominica and it was CARICOM who had to come to the rescue.

All these issues and events have had a cumulative effect and have contributed to systemic and structural poverty in the Caribbean. That is why the recent Congressional bill (HRES 865 IH) tabled by Brooklyn Congresswoman Yvette Clarke although important, must not rely exclusively on this World Bank Report entitled Crime, Violence, and Development: Trends, Costs, and Policy Options in the Caribbean. While the report in essence is a thorough study of crime in the region it spent little or no time on the root causes of crime and offers, in typical World Bank fashion, a plethora of solutions that have been tried and tested in the developed world. In essence the report’s “top down” approach did not take the unique conditions of the Caribbean to mind.

For instance, it offered no comprehensive approach to poverty reduction that is at the very core of crime in Caribbean. It regurgitated the old stanzas that law enforcement and people in the Caribbean already know with only a few new recommendations. While I am not a law enforcement expert I believe that CARICOM’s crime problems can be alleviated, not completely solved, by developing a uniquely regional, united approach to poverty reduction while at the same time enacting a regional public education anti-crime campaign that is enhanced by new approaches to public education.

At the island level governments need to quickly engage all of the community?s stakeholders in a process of dialogue that includes young people. The stakeholders are the religious community, business organizations (like the Chamber of Commerce, Rotary etc.), non-governmental organizations (NGOS), civic groups, women?s groups, and opposition political parties. In short, there must be a united, creative approach. Clearly, since Government does not have the answers it must seek them through the widest possible consultations. It is from such a diverse group that the genius of the people will be released.

Finally, a word about law enforcement. New crimes call for new policing methods and a good place to start is with community policing. But that is not enough and it is my humble belief that four basic strategies have to be employed and enhanced to really battle crime from a law enforcement standpoint. The very first thing is solving crime through detection that involves the development of new technology and the application of advanced methods of evidence retrieval, investigation or detection.

Next, is solving crime through investigation that involves improving access to current methods and the sharing of good practices to reduce crime, as well as finding new and improved approaches. This approach has to include things like working with offenders, running public awareness meetings, working with at-risk, disaffected young people, and the setting up of special police task forces to address such things as drinking and drug abuse all the kinds of things that traditional Caribbean Police organizations never get into.

Next, is solving crime through prevention that addresses ways of preventing, or disrupting, criminal activity. Caribbean Police organizations must become more sophisticated and more modern in things like building design and layout, offender control and rehabilitation technologies and systems as well as working directly with community organizations that help offenders and groups that deal with young people.

Finally, Caribbean Police organizations must fight crime through knowledge and understanding that involves sharing good practices, encouraging continuing professional development and developing networks. This holistic, multi-disciplinary approach creates new solutions to old problems. Among areas that need developing are new thinking about the social and ethnic composition of the various islands, expert witness training and evaluation and fitting best practices to suit the local conditions of each island.Crime is the negative side of development and therefore CARICOM in its deliberations must factor it into the region’s continued economic, social and political growth. Unfortunately, crime comes with the development and CARICOM just has to adapt and change its methods to face these new and serious challenges.

 

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